You Were Born Awake - Then Your Religion  Told You to Go Back to Sleep

When people talk about “spiritual transformation,” it sounds lofty and mysterious. But at its core, it’s painfully simple: it’s the moment you realize most of what you believe about yourself was never yours to begin with.

The family handed you their fears. The Church handed you their rules. Culture handed you its standards and told you to smile. You absorbed it all because survival required belonging. But now your body knows the truth: pretending is expensive - the kind of debt that shows up as fatigue, resentment, and decision paralysis.

That tension between your real self and your approved self is what I call a Power Leak. It’s not sin. It’s not rebellion. It’s your nervous system whispering, “This is killing you.” If you’ve ever said yes while your whole body screamed no, you’ve felt the leak.

Here’s the truth you were never meant to hear: you were born with all the answers you’ll ever need to all the questions you’ll ever have. Their “training” made you forget. Their “training” taught you to mistrust your own inner authority until it sounded like doubt and felt like danger.

The residue of that conditioning sneaks in as three survival moves that look holy but drain you dry:
• The Pleaser: collapsing your needs to keep the peace, apologizing for existing, and calling it “being loving.”
• The Controller: tightening your grip on outcomes so you can feel safe, labeling it “stewardship” or “responsibility.”
• The Disappearing Act: going quiet, playing small, hiding your brilliance under a bushel (where the f#ck did you find that bushel anyway).

Sound familiar? That’s not theology, that’s trauma in a choir robe.

Underneath every rule, every guilt trip, every sermon that insisted you were unworthy… lives an ancient, electric truth: you are made of the same energy that spins the planets. Literally. You are not part of the universe, you ARE the universe. Your cells carry the blueprint for wholeness. The signal has always been broadcasting; you were just taught to change the channel to static.

You’re not “seeking” God. You’re remembering you are God,  an expression of the same field of love and awareness you were told was somewhere “out there.” If that line made your stomach flip, breathe. That flutter is the part of you that already knows and is relieved someone finally said it out loud.

Start where you are. Today. Not after you read three more books or earn a certificate in Worthiness. Begin by noticing.

• Notice when you collapse to please - the quick “sure, no problem” you resent five minutes later.
• Notice when you tighten to control - scripting every conversation in your head because uncertainty feels like danger.
• Notice when you disappear- turning down the volume on your joy, humor, or desire to make other people comfortable.
• Notice when you call your intuition “crazy,” then Google what you already know.

Then breathe.

Place a hand over your heart and ask: “What if I stopped trying to earn worthiness and started reclaiming self-worth - simply by letting myself be ME?”

That single question begins the rewiring. Because each time you notice a Power Leak, and choose truth over tradition, self-trust over approval, you reclaim voltage. The lights come back on room by room. You return to yourself.

One tiny practice: give your nervous system proof that you are safe with you. Pick one low-stakes situation this week and tell the truth a little sooner. Decline a plan you don’t want. Ask for the extra day. Eat the food your body actually wants. Not to be rebellious - to be honest. That honesty is how safety grows from the inside.

If this hits that deep place in your chest - the one equal parts grief and relief - you’re exactly where you need to be. The next step isn’t layering on new beliefs. It’s remembering the you that existed before anyone told you who to be.

That’s why I created Your YOU-Turn - a free collection of simple tools and reflections to help you spot inherited conditioning, plug your first few Power Leaks, and reconnect to your inner guidance system. It’s free. It’s gentle. It’s mind-blowing in the best “finally, this makes sense” kind of way. And it’s built for women like us - the ones who left the pew but kept the soul.

1. What does “You Were Born Awake” mean?

It means you were born with innate wisdom and self-awareness - but societal and religious conditioning made you forget your true essence.

2. What are Power Leaks in spirituality?

Power Leaks are moments when you betray your truth to please, control, or disappear for others — draining your energy and sense of authenticity.

3. How can I start reconnecting with my true self?

Begin by noticing when you collapse, control, or hide. Choose honesty over approval and let your nervous system learn that you are safe with yourself.